Philosophy

Is pain good, or is God's good so good and so pervasive that it uses all things for good?

Existing is better than not existing.
If you were to imagine the greatest being possible, but it did not exist, then by definition it would not be the greatest being possible. God MUST exist because God is all good and existing is better than not existing.

Which is more real? The concept of the chair, or the chair?

God is pure good. God is pure glory. God is pure justice. God is pure might. ... I was asked tonight whether, when it comes down to it, I follow God for His might and glory? or if I follow Him because He is good.
"If, somehow, you could see heaven and the devil was there, and God was in Hell, would you follow God (because He is good)?" (This leaves out the debate as to what "heaven" and "hell" are - are they places? Or are they the complete presence or absence of God?)
[I think, by the way, that the answer I am coming up with is that I follow Him because He is ALL of them. While I can't wrap my brain around it (due to my humanity (gasp, right?! ;P )), I don't have to choose which of those attributes is why I ultimately follow Him. His goodness CAN'T be separated from His love which CAN'T be separated from His justice which CAN'T be separated from His glory. He is, by definition, all of all of them (and so many more) all the time, at the sametime, and they are not mutually exclusive. Why must I force God into a box of what I can understand in my humanity? Why can't I choose to accept the understanding that I cannot understand God and move forward?]



It is all philosophical discussion. My night included (along with general fun and awesomeness) one of the most intense philosophical discussions I have ever had.
I know at least one person in the room was frustrated because "it doesn't ultimately matter." No, it does not ultimately matter why we follow God, but that we follow God. Yes, you can live your life running hard after God without mulling over and debating the philosophical issues.

But.

There in intrigue in philosophy. There is beauty in philosophy.
And more importantly, God reveals Himself to people whose minds work like mine through things like philosophy.
My brain hurts. I honestly kind of feel like it's exploding. And through that, God is drawing me to Himself: His greatness and His ultimate-ness are an aspect of why I love Him and what draws me to Him. The fact that I cannot understand and that all the philosophers of our age, the ages before, and the ages to come cannot explain or understand it all... it serves to point me to God. There MUST be something over it. It cannot be without something that comprehends it. People believe evolution because they can wrap their minds around it. Therefore, it "exits" in their worlds. Chairs exist in our world because we can wrap our minds around them. Orthopedic knees exist in our world because we can wrap our minds around them. In our world because we understand.
So if we cannot understand, we must be part of a greater existance which does understand.


When my brain is exploding, it shows me the God I serve. His power and wisdom are put on display for me to stand in awe.
I worship Him because He makes sense of my world.
I worship Him because He makes a world of which I cannot make sense.